Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images

The brothers Højgaard Shoot 59 in New Orleans

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Alex Miceli | Last updated Apr 24, 2025 5:03 PM ET

The brothers Højgaard.

Twins, born in Denmark, honed their games through years of competition against each other in the little town of Billund in the central part of the country.

With Billund known as the birthplace of Lego blocks, the Højgaard play second fiddle to the children’s toy for now. At just 24 years of age, the brothers are slowly making a mark on a game that few Danes are familiar with.

On Thursday at the Zurich Classic, the brothers combined for a Four-Ball (Best Ball) bogey-free 59, a score only bested by a USA team of Isaiah Salinda and Kevin Velo.

“I think last year we both had high expectations about going out and making a ton of birdies and we didn't do that last year so it was a bit of a wrong mindset to go into it,” Rasmus Højgaard said.

“Now today we didn't think too much about getting to a certain score or anything. It was more about creating a good vibe and create chances out there, and then we both rolled the putter well.”

Last year, the Højgaard’s shot a 4-under 68 in the first round and never came close to making the cut.

The brothers have eight DP World Tour victories, Nicolai with three and Rasmus with five, but neither has broken through on the PGA Tour.

“I would say we had a quick look at 8, 7 or 8, and we saw there was a group out there shooting a really low score,” Nicolai said of early leaderboard watching. “That'll be interesting to see what they shoot.

But to be fair, we've just got to focus on ourselves and our own golf and just try to plug away and try to cover each other when we're out of position. That's kind of what we did today, really well.”

With it being a Ryder Cup year, Nicolai would like to return after a successful 2023 appearance in Italy, while Rasmus would like to be teamed with his brother at Bethpage Black in his first Ryder Cup.

“I'm not too sure what his tee time was today,” Rasmus said when asked if European Captain Luke Donald was watching. “But I'm very sure he's more focused about his own game today.”

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: